Explore a career in Linguistics, become a Linguist!

1. How to
become a
Linguist…

2. What’s Linguistics?
• The study of the human language; an in-depth
investigation of the human language; its structure
and uses, and the relationship between those, as
well as the acquisition and development of
language.
o Different branches
• Phonetics (sounds)
• Phonology (sound systems)
• Syntax (structure)
• Morphology (words)
• Semantics (meaning)
• Etc.

3. What does a Linguist do?
• Found in MANY different settings as:
1. Interpreters
2. Translators
3. Transcriptionists
4. Government Reporters
5. Professors
6. Government Analysts
7. Cryptologists
8. Etc.

4. Linguistics is everywhere!
• How many vowels in English?
• How do you pronounce “ghoti”?

5. Answers!
• English has 12 vocalic sounds as opposed to
its only FIVE written forms: a, e, i, o, u.
*Picture from the International Phonetics Alphabet website

6. Answers! (con’t)
• The word “ghoti,” could be pronounced
“fish.” Yes! Take the following sounds from
the not-so-great English grammar:
– /gh/ from “enough” pronounced as /f/
– /o/ from “women” pronounced as /I/ open [i]
– /ti/ from “nation” pronounced as /sh/
*Various sources, common Linguistics humor!

7. Interested yet?
• Take this choice if you have always been
fascinated or interested in how language works
o Take many English classes (on the Linguistics side of
the language, NOT literature)
o Study foreign languages and learn as many as
possible
o Study even MATHEMATICS to make your career in
Linguistics stronger!
o Take a basic Linguistics class to find out if that’s
something you would want to consider long-term

8. Who do I contact?
• Start with your school counselor
• Ask your friends about the subject
• Consult your school’s course catalog and lists
of degrees offered
• Do research online
• Visit the International Phonetic Alphabet
online

9. Thank you!
Explore new path ways, you’ll love it!

10. Sources
• International Phonetics Alphabet Website:
– http://www.omniglot.com/writing/ipa.htm